(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an automatic gas pump lever holding device, in particular an adjustable device that is releasably attached to an automatic gas pump nozzle that maintains the trigger lever of the nozzle in a manually pre-set position.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Conventional automatic gas pump nozzles are designed for ease of operation to enable a purchaser to dispense a desired amount of fuel into his vehicle at a desired rate. A nozzles comprise a spout to be inserted into the vehicle fuel tank opening, a handle gripped by the operator, a trigger lever that is adjusted between a closed and fully opened position by the operator to adjust the fluid flow rate from the nozzle, and a trigger guard. Some nozzles also comprise a hinged regulator clip at a back portion of the trigger guard. The regulator clip can be pivoted forward by the operator to hold the trigger lever in several adjustment positions. Alternatively, some nozzles have a hinged pawl attached to the bottom of the trigger lever and a dog tooth rack fixed to the inside of the trigger guard. The pawl engages with several teeth of the rack as the trigger lever is adjusted and will maintain the trigger lever in several adjustment positions. Both of these trigger lever holding devices permit the operator to set the flow rate of the nozzle to a desired flow rate and enable the operator to perform other tasks such as vehicle maintenance.
However, many automatic gas pump nozzles are not equipped with either type of the above-described holding devices, and of those gas pump nozzles that are originally equipped with the devices, often the holding device is damaged or removed from the nozzle. Operation of these nozzles requires the operator to stand at the gas tank opening holding the nozzle trigger open the entire time it takes to fill the vehicle fuel tank.
The present invention solves this problem by providing a unique device that a gas pump operator can releasably attach to a conventional gas pump nozzle to hold the trigger lever of the nozzle in an adjusted position to dispense fuel at a desired rate, and frees the operator to perform other tasks such as vehicle maintenance.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a gas pump lever holding device that is compact and is attached easily to an automatic gas pump nozzle by an operator to hold the trigger of the nozzle in a desired manually adjusted position to dispense gasoline into the operator's vehicle at a desired rate of fluid flow.